Breathe
by Rivergirls Anthem
Summary: POST season one. Michael tries to reconnect with Sara after her overdose and Lincoln's exonoration.What happens when her life is threatened by another riot and he isn't there? :: CHAPTER NINE IS UP - WHOA! XO::
1. Breathe

**A/N : I know! I know, I know, I know, I'm a bad girl for starting a new story when my others aren't finished, but you guys know how I can get - once something gets stuck in my head, it won't leave me alone until I write it down. **

**Please tell me if you like this and if I should continue. Please?**

* * *

She'd been quiet enough. At least, that's what she'd thought up until the moment she heard the door to her building being swung open and her name being called. _Damn it._

"Sara!"

The same way he'd called her name every other moment when she'd tried – and failed – to be clever and use the fire escape to elude him. She hadn't been using the front door for ages – not since he'd figured out where she lived nowadays and decided on moving to her doorstep to…beg for forgiveness, she supposed. What he _was _doing was making her feel self-conscious, insecure and emotional. Things had gone as far as her having to put a sign on the inside of her door that spelled 'NO', the way she'd done to her cabinet and secret hiding places for morphine.

No. She'd quit her addiction. She'd quit morphine. And now, she would quit Michael Scofield, too.

It was probably one of the old ladies neighbouring her that had let him in – they were a sucker for his eyes. Like she had been. _Was._ Or maybe he'd just broken in. He was Michael Scofield after all. The man had broken out of prison and had broken her heart all at the same time. He was a briljant demolisher. Where would he cross the line?

At her door, it seemed.

She supposed that she admired his patience a little. But some days it just pissed her off. Like when all she wanted to do was go to work, finish her day and go home without hoping to find him on her frontstep or seeing him in her rearviewmirror.

She sighed. "Yes?"

His shoulders sagged a little, the way they always did when their conversation turned out cold. An ache shot through her heart – the way it always did when their conversation turned out cold. It was their usual routine, but Sara was still surprised to feel it. She berated herself – she was supposed to quit him, damn it. Her heart just wasn't make this any easier.

"Aren't you ever going to talk to me?" His voice sounded soft – it, and he, sounded broken. "Please."

That last whispered plea almost got the best of her. She closed her eyes briefly, before turning away from him and walking, seemingly strong, in the direction of her car. "Not today."

Afterwards,when she sat behind the wheel, she wondered if she thought she was being strong or just plain stupid.It was a question with an answer that she had pushed to the back of her mind – a question of a truth that she didn't trust herself with. What did it matter anyway? Sara had learned her lesson on opening up her heart to people. Only a real idiot would make that mistake twice. Or, as her nana had once said: "There are a million different types of stupid, but only a real pathetic idiot will be the same type of stupid twice."

Michael

He'd tried, and tried. Then he'd tried some more. It's not that he didn't realise how much he'd hurt her, or that he'd never be forgiven. But all that aside, he also realised that he needed her, loved her and couldn't live without her. He knew that somehow he'd get to her and show her what she meant to him.Which was more than he could express with words. Though he'd tried that too. Sara hadn't listened, and he couldn't say that he blamed her. He would just keep on trying.

After they'd found a way for Lincoln to be exonorated; they being Veronica, Lincoln and himself (LJ being the devoted sidekick), he'd made looking for her his number one priority. Not that she'd hadn't been on his mind 24/7 to begin with…

It wasn't easy, especially when Veronica flat out refused him to use her lawyer skills and resources to help him track her down, claiming that he needed to clean up his own messes. He'd rolled his eyes and glared at her. She woud've jumped through hoops to help Lincoln. Lincoln, who wasn't a real big help either. Sure, his brother tried to be supportive, but his constant praising of Sara before reminding Michael of how badly he'd screwed up weren't always appreciated.

The only one that he'd be able to talk to about this, about her – was on the run. Fernando Sucre was still a wanted man in America. Michael just hoped that his buddy was happy, hiding out somewhere with Maricruz and their kid. He missed Sucre, nearly as much as he missed _her._

"And?"

He looked up at his nephew from his spot on the bed and sadly shook his head. LJ sighed and sat down next to his uncle. "You know, I hate to say this, Uncle Mike, but maybe you should just give up. It's _been_ a month."

Michael closed his eyes. "I'm not letting her go, LJ."

The teenager nodded in acceptance. "Do you think she'll eve-"

"MICHAEL!"

Both men rolled their eyes at Lincoln's once again rude interruption of their conversation, but the smiles on their faces faded quickly once they realised who urgent, and awkward Lincoln's voice had sounded. "Lincoln?"

"Could you come here for a second? You'll want to see this."

Michael jumped and walked over to where his brother was sitting in front of the tv, the beer in his hand seemingly forgotten. His eyes turned towards the screen, where a live reporter was talking to the camera. Wait a minute – he knew those gates.

"And for the second time in a considerably short ammount of time, the prisoners of Fox River State penitentiary seem to have lost it. This time under the supervision of a new warden, things have gone pear-shaped. Now only one question will remain : What will be done? No word as of yet about the demands of the inmates, but as we've all learnt from the last time this happened – they will stop at nothing."

Michael had been standing paralysed behind his older brother, as if the news was just rolling over him like a tidalwave. That all changed when the camera travelled the walls of the prison and the window to the infirmary came in sight.

The last thing he heard before rushing out the door was Lincoln shouting his name in fear.

* * *

_Please tell me what you think? Please?_

_XO_


	2. Can't deny

**A/N : Hey you guys, I'm back! Yes, I know that it's been AGES since I updated, and I'm so glad that I finally found the time. It's such a relief to be able to update again. Really! Emotionally, I was a mess without updating.**

**I'd be so grateful if you would review this chapter? I really need some reviews! Please tell me what you think? Pleeease?**

**XO, as always,**

_

* * *

_

_I lied. I want him to save me._

The thing was, she realised, that hiding from the truth wasn't as easy as it had once been.Once upon a time, she had deluded herself into thinking that 'no, she didn't feel a thing for a certain inmate with a chest full of tattoos and eyes that seemed to bore into souls'; those few days of blissful denial had been the best and yet the worst of the year that had only just begun when he appeared in her office.

It wasn't that easy anymore. Not when he had kissed her and now fought for her as she had always wanted a man to fight. Not when she woke up to the thought of him and stepped around his sleeping body before driving to work. Not when he was always on her mind.

Her eyes betrayed her. They stared back at her from the image in the rearviewmirror and only continued to state the obvious – she needed him. So why wouldn't she show him? Why was she afraid to look at him and just come out and say 'hey, buddy, you hurt me, but guess what? I miss you more than words can say'? She just wasn't brave enough.

So until the time came when she would be able to step up and shout out – as long as he would continue fighting – she would just go through the motions and do nothing but be with him in her dreams.

Dreams that were interrupted by the sound something falling to the floor, a ringing that disturbed the silence in between patients. "Katie?" Sara walked over to the door, concerned that her friend had badly hurt herself. When calling for Katie and getting nothing in return, something was off. "Come on, miss chatty, say something. I'll even let you interrogate me abou-"

The office looked empty enough – it would have looked _normal_ enough – if it wouldn't have been for the sight of a nurse who had fallen to the floor, her hand outstreched towards a dish that had rolled out of her hands, and a smirking man standing next to her, a gleam of victory in his eyes. _Eyes; the mirror to ones soul._

"Katie!" Diving to the floor hastily, she almost forgot that she was not only dealing with an unconscious nurse, but with an inmate that she knew all too well was up to no good. Sara let out a scream when, only seconds away from reaching Katies body, she was pulled up roughly by strong hands that had gripped her hair in an attempt to hurt her. The attempt succeeded.

Where were the guards? "GU-"

"shh. No screams, doctor.We made sure that there ain't no one who's gonna help you now." His breathing was ragged next to her ear, and the warmth that it added to her skin only made her recoil in disgust. The last thing she needed now, was yet another inmate who assumed that breathing heavily was a turn-on. Personally, she thought that the most heart-warming thing to encounter was a man fighting (emotionally, not physically) for what he believed in. For what he felt.

She closed her eyes. And the man who did that every day, for her, was unaware of this whole mess.

"We?"

Oh boy.. Look who it is: the rat pack. She nodded at the men in mock-greeting and couldn't keep the smile out of her voice. "Theo. Brad. My, my."

Theo limped over at her (his knee had never fully recovered after she'd stepped on it all those months ago) and crouched down to stare her in the face. "Doctor…" His honeysweet voice disgusted her. Her spit in his face didn't charm him either. Sara bit her tongue to keep the cry out when her skin started to tingle after his hand had connected with it. "Still the same old bitch."

"Don't." The leader's voice warned him. "We want him to watch her."

"Him?" Sara's eyes widened slighty. "Do you mean that you've found another pup in the pound to worship you, Kwame?"

He towered over her and let out a hearty laugh. "Not one who worships me, baby. " Sara raised her eyebrows in a silent question, but it wasn't the big, scary man who answered her, but rather the robust and bruised ex-captain.

"He'll come. Don't pretend he won't, Sara. You know your big old pretty saviour will come RUNNING as soon as he hears we've got you.."

_Oh God. Michael…_

Theo pouted. "Do you really think he's pretty?"

"Michael?" Sara swallowed. "This is all about Michael? You're mad 'cause he got out and you didn't? Because he's smarter?"

"Wrong." Kwame grinned and slightly released his hold on Sara, enough to trail a finger past her cheek. "This is about Scofield stealing our piece of candy the last time, and getting away with it. You wanted to get _pleasured_ by us, sweetheart – and he took that away. Now, we want to have our fun back – but we want him here with us.The more, the merrier, right doc?"

The madness of this motivation struck her – so they wanted her _and _Michael? Her eyes found Brad, silently huddled in the corner of the room, leaning his overweight body against the doorframe. "What do you get out of this, Brad? Michael didn't save me from you too, did he?"

He stalked over to her and leaned in dangerously, and despicable, close. "I want to teach your collegeboy some respect. He thought that he could fool me, did he? Made me laughing stock and got me in _here_…" He motioned around him, and turned to the window where she had stood, watching Michael being transported towards another prison. Where had she been right now if that plan had gone through? So many things would have been different. Lincoln would have been dead… "Besides, doctor, you're not a _bad piece of ass_."

Sara shook her head as much as her captor would let her. "You're despicable." Her head flew forward as he pushed it down to connect with the floor.

She was _so_ going to have a headache in the morning.

--

"Henry…"

"First of all, just because it seems that you were right about your brother being innocent doesn't entitle that I've forgiven being bound and hit on the head –" Henry Pope shook his head with a sigh, adjusting his glasses as they slipped further down his nose, and he regarded the man standing in front of him, pleading with him to understand. Michael was a man to be respected, he knew that now, but it didn't make the feeling of being betrayed by his own son disappear. It was known for cons to lie, and as a former warden of a maximum security prison, he should have gotten used to that by now, but somewhere inside he had hoped Michael to be better than that.

Or maybe it was because his pride was hurt. Michael Scofield had somehow bruised his ego when he had threatened him, and it had hurt.

"warden, please."

"And second," he continued, "even if I wanted to, I can't help you." He sighed. "Michael, you know how much I care about Sara – she's like my own daughter, for God's sake. But the thing is, it's not my prison anymore."

He allowed himself to lay a hand on Michael's shoulder, and inwardly smiled at the reaction it caused with the younger man. Michael Scofield, who had been looking at the floor, the pain clearly written in his eyes, now looked up at the touchand gave the warden a feeble smile. "I need to find her.."

The warden nodded. He could tell that Michael had, probably despite his intentions not to, fallen in love with Sara. It made something glow inside the 'father'. "Have you tried her cellphone?"

Michael's voice turned to a whisper. "She's not answering."

"Let me try another number…" Henry pulled out his cellphone and dialed a number before putting the phone to his ear. "Warden? Henry Pope."

* * *

_Please tell me what you think? Pretty please? I need you guys!_

_XO, as always_


	3. Ringing in my ears

**A/: Back! With another update...Please tell me you like it? Please?**

* * *

"How's everything going over there?" He frowned, and Michael knew that that couldn't be a good sign. "No."Henry sighed into the phone. "I've tried _'by the book'_ the last time, Warden, and it got one of my staff killed and another one in life-threatening danger."

He rolled his eyes. "No, sir, I'm not trying to tell you how to run the prison, I am merely sharing my experiences with you. I've known this men a lot longer than you have, and they will stop at nothing. Do you know who's in charge of the siege?" Michael's head snapped up. He'd known these men, too. Probably even better than the warden had. He'd lived with these men – heard them snore in the cells next to him, fought some of them in the yard, battled them for Sara.

"If I may suggest something?" _Doubtful_, Michael thought. Those in power never like suggestions. "Well, I don't care if you tell me to mind my own business. There's a woman in there who's the closest thing to a daughter I have and furthermore, she's someone's fiancée." The breaking of a glass made Henry spin around and look at a wide-eyed Michael, on the verge of tears. "Don't tell us to but out when we know that prison better than you do."

Michael jumped up from his chair, mindful to walk around the pieces of shattered glass that lay on the floor, the remains of beer drifting in small puddles on the floor. He ran over to the window that looked out over the garden and rested his head against the cold glass. _Why hadn't she told him that she was to be married? _All of the hope that had resided inside of him died a sudden death._He had lost her forever_. It was as Lincoln had told him so many times : reality had succesfully kicked faith's ass.

Henry's voice had faded in the background. There was nothing there for Michael but his broken heart, and the anger that surfaced when he thought of the fiancé who was absent from this scene. Didn't the dirtbag realize how precious Sara was? How she needed to be treasured every single second of the day? How she was…Sara?

"Michael – you don't mind being engaged to Sara for the day, do you_?"_

His heart bounced off of the ground with a soft thud. "She's not engaged?"

"Well, she is – today she is..to you. You see, Michael, you can go inside the prison perimeters unless you're family or soon-to-be-family. So I lied. The warden is expecting you. I raised my voice at him, telling him that he better follow your advice since you are the one who knows the prison better than anyone else…"

"Or?"

"…or I'd tell his wife of his adventure with his secretary at the other prison." At this, Henry grinned wickedly, and Michael let out a soft smile. "We're not going to lose her, Michael. Not today."

--

"Where is he?_" _

Sara smiled at the impatience of the men. They had been walking around the room like caged animals for about an hour now. She shook her head unconsciously. But they'd noticed.

"Got something to say, doc?"

She shook her head fiercely. "Nope." She let the 'pe' pop, like you would when speaking to toddlers. Which, she realized, was a mistake.

"I said," Kwame stalked over to her and kicked her in the groin. She doubled over in pain, but was held back by the ropes that bound her by the neck to the heater, that was doing overtime. Her face had reddened because of the heat, and red stripes had appeared on the skin, clearly defining the shape of the rope. Well, not so much rope as bandage-string. Nevertheless, it cut her deep. "do you have something to say, doc?"

Where she got the bravado, she didn't know – maybe it was the thought of Michael giving her strength – but she found it in her to smile up at the three men. "If you really think that the three of you will be able to overthrow Michael.." she laughed, "then you're even more dimwitted than I thought you were."

Theo frowned. "What's that?"

"It seems," Bellick explained to him, "that our little _alcoholics anonymous_ doctor thinks we're stupid, Theo."

Kwame let out a laugh. "_AA_, doctor?"

His companion clapped his hands excitedly. "AA, BB, CC, D. EE, FF,…"

Brad pushed him against the door."Shut up, Theo."

But Kwame appeared not to have noticed any of it. He hadn't taken his eyes off of Sara, licking his lips and trailing a finger past his chin in silent contemplation. "What'd'you use?"

"I was an alcoholic, Kwame. What do you think?" She prayed for Brad not to contradict her on this matter. He knew her weakness hadn't been booze, but _the magic business_. The medical business. She prayed that her inkling was right – that Brad wasn't out for her in this scenario. That he'd keep his mouth shut. It was a test.

"Boys – anyone got a beer?" The three of them giggled and Sara could feel one pair of eyes burning her, but the owner's mouth didn't move apart from the forced laugh that came from it.

"I am curious, though," Sara changed the subject, "how did you do it?" She shrugged. "I mean, the last time, when the two of you were in sick bay, all you did was move further on the impulses given in A-wing. What happened this time?"

Theo smiled. "It was all very genius, really. First of all, we ca-"

"Shut your face, you moron." The younger one cupped his cheek when a hard hand struck him in the face. "Why should we tell you" He tilted his head slightly to the right. "Got any more cellphones hidden away that you can go blabbing through?"

Ah. The cellphone incident. The very reason that her strength had returned to her. About an hour and a half ago, she was shaken by the vibrating of her cellphone in her pocket and the sound of her favorite song reverberating through the air. Her favorite song, assigned to notify her of a call from her very favorite person. _So he knew._ Michael knew that she was in trouble.

She wasn't scared anymore.

But then, of course, they'd taken it away from her and – _fools – _handed it over to Theo, who, in his excitement and struggle to do good and be accepted by the elder two, smashed it to pieces against the wall, crying 'no one's gonna save you now, bitch!'. True, but it also stopped them from contacting Michael and threatening him.

"No more cellphones. Just an…interest in what you gentlemen have been up to." She gave them a dirty wink, trying to be _likeable_ enough to get the information out of them, but to no avail. Even though she had certainly charmed Theo, it was nothing unless Kwame budged. Something not about to happen anytime soon.

Brad suddenly turned from the window and smirked at them. "It's show time, boys."

* * *

_Please tell me you liked it? Oh, I really really want you guys to like it! Please? If you review, then I'll write the next chapter, which'll be ACTION! Action is nice...you like action...Don't you?_

_XO_


	4. With a bullhorn in his hand

**A/N : I know I promised you some action in this one, but it turned out to be a negotiating-thing. I promise you the next one is going to be Action with a capital 'A'.**

**This chapter is dedicated to Daydreamer169, who is always there for me.**

**XO**

* * *

He couldn't believe that he was back again. The gates looked just the same as they had once done, and the same hum hung in the atmosphere. It vibrated with fear and indecisiveness. He sighed. _Just great._

"Michael Scofield." The soft voice greeted him, with a hidden hint of anxiety in it. Michael looked up and smiled at one of the only kind faces Fox River had to offer.

"Hello, Lewis. How's the secretary? " Their little fling hadn't been secret for some time now, and rumor had it, they were to be married in June.

The CO's face lit up at the mention of his fiancée. "She's good, Scofield. But hey," he gently nudged Michael, "I heard you'll be getting yourself married too, one of these days." He cocked his head in the direction of the infirmary, and watched as the man in front of him swallowed hard.

_I wish._

"Yeah," he answered the suggestion with a sad smile, "but I've got to save her, first."

-

"I wonder when he'll be here." Theo clapped his hands excitedly, and Sara felt a mixture of emotions rip through her. Relief, that he was here. A longing to see him. And all-consuming fear that he would fall into the hands of these men, who were blinded by their need for revenge. _Michael, please be careful…_

Brad sniggered as he watched the man they had so wanted to see walk over to the new Warden, knowing he didn't stand a chance. That new bloke was as tough as nails, and not likely to just let anyone with a crush inside of his fortress. "He'll be here soon enough, Theo – that is, if he gets past the big boss."

Kwame's head snapped up. "What do you mean, 'if'?"

_What if. It was something t_o _wonder about. What if she run into Michaels arms thi_s _morning, the way she had wanted to, and called in sick today?_

He shook his head angrily. "We need him. Theo, tell them we need him."

Theo's bottom lip quivered."Why- why me?"

"Do it."

-

"Mr. Scofield. I have to say that I was surprised to hear that you were the fiancé." The warden stared at Michael, as if to unravel thetruth by just looking at him. "I didn't see an ring."

Michael held his hand out for the warden to shake and just nodded in reply to his pseudo-question. "Yes sir. The engagement's fairly new, and we didn't want to attract the attention of the inmates." He looked at the stone building. "I've been in there, sir. I know that there is nothing these men want more than something that's not theirs to have."

_Like Sara._

"Now," he continued, "with all due respect, sir, but every minute that we stand here, is a minute that we can't have back. I want to have her back home with me as soon as possible."

Finally, there appeared to be a crack in the steel armor of the warden's face. "We've changed some things. After you got out…well, we couldn't afford for any other men to find the flaws you had enlarged."

Of course they had. "Just tell me where."

As they walked over to the make-shift table where the blueprints lay, they were met by CO Stolte, who ran to their side and nearly tripped in his hurry to reach them.

"Sir –" he breathed, "someone's trying to tell us something."

The warden quickened his pace, his hands reaching for the bullhorn that lay discarded on the table. "Who is it?"

Stolte shook his head in amazement. "Theo."

_Oh God. They wanted to finish what they had started earlier.__ With Sara._

"Where's this…" the warden cursed. "officer, which button do I press?"

The CO's eyes widened with amazement. What kind of warden didn't know which button to push. He struggled to keep the disbelief out of his voice. "The…the blue one, sir."

"Oh right." He held his thumb firm on the blueish plastic pin, and muttered a 'thank you', that echoed over the entire yard. Ah. "This is the warden, theo. What do you want?"

His small voice bordered the sound of a scream. "We want Scofield to know that we've got the doctor."

Michael closed his eyes as the realization dawned on him. They weren't after Sara. They were after him. Once again, he had managed to put her in danger.

"Sir?" He held his hand outstretched towards the warden, who stared at him, frowning.

"Scofield, do you mind? I'm negotiating here."

"They're after me, sir." He gratefully took the bullhorn that was handed to him, purposefully ignoring the annoyed mutters of the man who was in charge of the facility.

"I'm here."

-

The sound of his voice was…_oh God_. If there was one sound in the whole world that she could hear for eternity, it would be this. 'I'm here', he'd said, not only to Theo, but to her as well. Wanting her to know that now that he was here, everything was going to be okay.

She watched Theo jump up and down in front of the window. "We want you to watch!" he shouted.

"You don't want her, you want me. Let her go."

Theo screeched, and everyone inside the room held their hands to their ears to block the sound. Everyone but Sara, that is, whose hands were bound beneath her back."If you want her, come and get her, bitch!"

She held her breath, fearing Michael's reply, yet craving to hear his voice again.

"I'm on my way."

_Please._

* * *

Please tell me if you liked it? Please?

XO


	5. I'm on my way

__

**AN : I can't begin to tell you how sorry I am for not being there for you these past months. I am ashamed to say that I hadn't given up hope. Yet, confessionsofabandgeek made me see the light, and I can't thank her enough for it. This is the first of many chapters I'm dedicating to her. **

**Please please tell me what you think. I need to know you haven't given up on me.**

**XO**

* * *

**__**

Sara

****

"But I need to see her first…" His voice echoed in the doctor's office, and she thought that maybe he'd put the emphasis on the third word he'd spoken. He _needed_ to see her. Sara's heart filled with warmth as she thought back on a memory that she had once loathed.

_Michael was standing in front of her, looking broken as she questioned his motives for being kind to her. For making her feel like she had never felt before. "I needed to be here…but then I wanted to be here, with you." He'd needed it. And now he needed her. His priorities had changed and now she filled the first place. _

Theo looked at Brad, who looked over to Kwame, who silently and heavily nodded. "Tell loverboy we'll make the arrangements."

-

_Michael_

He stood outside listening to the screams of Theo, the only connection he had right now to her. Theo, which meant that Kwame was the mastermind behind this whole operation. Which was a very very bad sign. Sure, he wasn't the toughest con in the joint, but he was a very close runner-up. Michael briefly closed his eyes as he imagined what Sara had to be going through. He tried to send her a signal, soothe her with his words, and he prayed to God it was helping her. If she could even hear him…

His body tensed as they pushed her body to the window, her face smeared on the glass, her breath forming a light fog. They held her back for him to see, and he could just make out a string tied around her neck. They'd bound her to something, and judging by the redness on her face, he guessed it was the heater.

"Don't tie her up again." He was amazed at how his voice could sound so rational when his whole being was screaming and crying. "Don't."

He heard Kwame's loud booming voice yell the reply. "Any other demands, Princess?"

"She doesn't get hurt."

-

_Sara_

Too late. She'd been hurt… her eyes started to sting as she watched his figure, seemingly so small that if any of the men stepped forward, they'd crush him underneath the soles of their shoes. Shoes…what had happened to hers? She looked down at her feet and only saw a pair of socks, though she couldn't remember how they'd gotten this way.

She needed to look into his eyes. She needed to raise her hand to his face and feel his smooth skin, cold against her palm. She needed everything about him, yet feared the moment where they'd be together once again.

_God, if only she'd said something else to him this morning. "Not today."_

Kwame laughed at his statement. "We wouldn't dream of it."

-

_Michael_

"And I want you to tell her that I love her more than anything." He prayed that she'd hear him this time, that she'd hear him loud and clear. Later on, maybe psycho-analysists could say that the words were spoken in the heat of the moment, that they'd been said because he was afraid. But they would be wrong. Michael had never spoken words more true in his whole life. She would know, too.

"And I want you to let her go." He added, so that they wouldn't mock his previous statement. If they mocked it, she would be more vulnerable than ever…and he wouldn't let them mock his love for her.

As he'd suspected, Kwame laughed. "Suuure, Scofield. But just for fun, why don't you come up here for a tea-party. We'll have a laugh, remembering the good ole' days."

Michael lowered the bullhorn, knowing that there was only one way to deal with them : action, head on.

"Fine."

He watched as they threw Sara on the ground and his heart sank. He should've protected her better, he should have stopped this before it had even had the slightest chance of happening. He should've never let her go.

Stalking over to the warden – a man he would never fully accept – and told him how everything was going to be. The man, annoyed but accepting, nodded, took his phone and rang.

-

_Sara_

She believed him. She did. It wasn't because of the danger they were in that he'd spoken the words, it was because he was fighting for her and was using every opportunity he had to make her realize his love for her. A love that was reciprocated – but unspoken by her lips. Sara Tancredi couldn't live with him anymore…and she was tired of pretending. The next time she saw him…she'd speak up. It was past time to put her heart before her head.

"You're pretty boy's so adorably sweet, eh doc?" Kwame grinned, his bare teeth flashed in her direction, not as white as they had once been. Hygiene wasn't a priority in Kwameland, it seemed. Though, not many of the other inmates disagreed with him on that. Lord knows, all the bodies she'd had to touch.

Not many of them had been smooth. And she couldn't recall of a single one that made her feel like his had done. When they'd touched, it had been like his skin sparkled beneath her fingers and sent her a little wave of happiness. She smiled. Was it weird that even his skin made her happy?

Touch. Theo smacked her again. Guess they weren't playing by the rules then…

__

_Michael_

The pipes were just as dusty as they had been a little over a year ago. Their thickness underneath his body was just the same. He crawled with a speed he hadn't possessed back then, because even though the completion of his plan had been falling or standing on a ticking time bomb back when he was trying to save his brother, he hadn't had the same motivations, or the same fear. The same love and urge to tell her exactly how he felt while staring into those beautiful eyes of hers, making realize that he would do anything for her. He would travel to the moon and back.

His fingers curled around the iron bars of the roster, pushing and pulling and finding it was too tight to budge and he let fear take him over for a minute, counted to twelve and closed his eyes. He wiped his brow with the back of his hand, feeling it warm as the drops of sweat transferred from skin to skin. His heart was pounding.

He needed to move, to go.. To make this roster disappear. He sighed and opened his eyes again, feeling the sting of forming tears. He smacked the roster in frustration.

It was hopeless.

* * *

_Please tell me what you think? I need you! XO Please review!! _


	6. Doctor, my eyes

**A/N : Okay, I've got a loooot of love to give...**

**To confessions of a band geek : for always being there for me. Since...well, you know. Since she PM'd me and gave me my hope back.**

**To Ily18, for PM'ing me and telling me to have a little faith...then showing me she believes in me by sending me an awesome review.**

**To ARSpunky, for calling me an amazing writer. (blushes) Thank you sooo much!**

**To Roonie : I promise you, I WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN AGAIN!! I WON'T BREAK YOUR HEART, I PROMISE.**

**And to Me123me, for the review.**

**Owkay, so here it issss : please tell me what you think! Pleaaase?**

**XO**

* * *

_Michael_

He sighed and then remembered. Her image flashed before his eyes and he was taken back to the day when she had first discovered him on her front step. She had looked at him and her eyes had flashed with something akin to happiness, before she'd uttered a sharp half-sigh. _"No."_ She'd said, and she'd shaken her head, letting her hair sweep around her face.

But he'd never gotten over that first initial reaction. It had given him hope that maybe she could grow to love him again, maybe…if he fought for her, she'd open up her heart again. If she could only find it in her to give him another chance.

"_Not today."_ Her eyes were cold these days, but he knew..he hoped that it was because she was trying hard not to show him how she felt, afraid that she'd get her heart broken again. He knew that cold demeanor. Before meeting her, he'd never really opened his heart up either. Sure, he was a charmer, he had a way with women, but he'd never let them in. Maybe it was because his mother had died when he was so young, or maybe it was because he had been waiting for the right woman to give his heart to. The woman he would save.

He raised himself on his hands and cautiously crawled backwards in the shaft, eyeing the problem. He was taking the roster apart, piece by piece inside his head…he could see how they all fit together and made up the object of his frustration.

_Push Twist Turn. That's it._

His fingers gripped the bars and pushed forward, twisting the construction before turning it to the right. He let out an audible breath that reverberated inside the ventilation system and pushed his body through the gap. Michael Scofield was back in the game.

-

_Sara_

"Why isn't he here already?"

Sara smiled at the irritation in Brad's voice. Patience had never been the CO's forte, but it had always amused her. Especially now, when she was sitting on the chair next to the window, chained to (of course she was chained to something, the men weren't about to let her wander around) the pipes that made out the drainage system. "Be patient, _Officer Bellick_," she spat out. "Good things come to those who wait."

He stalked over to her, his hand raised and ready to strike, but was stopped by Kwame, who held it in a tight grip. "You don't touch her."

"But Theo…"

"Theo," he repeated, with a knowing look towards the smaller one, "has learned his lesson, haven't you, Theo?" He got his reply in the way the man squirmed and huddled into the corner of the room, scared of yet another dose of punishment. Kwame had proven his point all right. The man would never look at a sink in the same way. "Nobody touches her…but me. Isn't that right, doc?" He ran his finger along her cheekbone, and she turned her head away.



"Nobody touches me – period."

He clucked his tongue. "We'll just see about that."

-

_Michael + Sara_

"You don't touch her. Period."

Well, as far as good entrances go, this one had been pretty good. Four heads snapped in his direction, some eyes portraying madness, others sheer longing, mixed in with a little fear. "Michael…" Her whisper seemed to be the loudest sound in the room, despite the fact that Kwame had started his over-top greeting.

"Mr. Scofield, how nice of you to join us. Now the party can get started. Boys?" The only bit that registered was the last part…the invitation, the question of what was about to happen. He watched as Theo and Bellick crept up to him and tried to twist his arms behind his back, not prepared for the cuts their arms were about to receive.

"Aaaau." It was a drawn out wail out of Theo's mouth, the somewhat feminine voice rising as his wail continued. "What IS it with the two of you and cutting open my arms?"

Sara shook her head. "I didn't _cut _your arms. I put a needle to them."

"Which is one of _your_ favorite things to do, isn't it doc?" Sara's eyes flew towards her former colleague. She couldn't believe it…he'd let her down.

Kwame grinned. " 'I was an alcoholic…what do you think?' Seems someone has been lying to us, boys."

Michael acted fast, kicking Bellick onto the ground when he stared at Sara before his eyes shifted towards the medical cabinet. But Kwame had seen.. He _knew now_ and because of that, he held yet another power over them. He bellowed a laugh and walked towards the cabinet, pulling at the glass door to acquire its insides. It wouldn't budge and Michael was glad something wasn't cooperating.

"Why isn't this opening?" A low growl filled the room. The tall dark man stalked over to Sara but Michael got there first, protectively crouching before her body to keep him away. He could feel her warm breath on his skin and damn it if it wasn't the best feeling he'd had in a long long time.

"Back off. You and I both know that Katie is the only one with a key to the cabinet – and since you apparently knocked her out cold, she's not giving you squat - , and I for one know that there are alarm contacts underneath the glass in the door, that close down the whole thing when the windows break." It was bullshit, but hey, he was winging it here. All three men knew that Michael was the one with all the info about Fox River and if he could make believe, all the better.

"I'm sorry.." Sara all of a sudden whispered against his shoulder. He couldn't for the life of him figure out what she was sorry _for_, but whispered his reply all the same. "Me too."

As the staring contest between the two alpha males continued in those few precious seconds after they'd confessed, he felt her lips against the nape of his neck. The small kiss was enough to make him shiver.

The moment was broken by Kwame's voice. "Boys – let's tango."

And whatever _that_ meant, it wasn't good.

* * *

_Oooh, Cliffy... Please tell me what you think? Please tell me I didn't let you down? Please? I need you!! XO Please review!_


	7. The con

**A/N : A big big thanks to everyone who reviewed! You made my day ! Oh, and a little bit more info : Michael had, while taking the roster apart, taken a nail out of the thing and held it behind his back, using it to cut open Theo & Brad's arms when they attacked him. I'm sorry, that wasn't very clear in the previous chapter. Anyway, here's what happens next...**

**I love you all for reading this and (hint hint) I'll love you even _more_ if you review! (there, that was subtle, eh?)**

**This chapter is dedicated to Me123me, for her awesome stories (AND power lines )**

**XO**

* * *

_Sara + Michael_

What happened next could've been plucked straight out of the Lion King. There's this scene where all the hyena's sneak up on their prey, while the prey is looking skittish and all… That's what this looked like. Theo reminded Sara of Ed, the hyena with the crazy laugh and slobbering mouth who was a bit psycho – and psycho wasn't good.

Apparently, 'let's tango' was the common expression used for : "Let's get the doctor all worked up while her savior screams helplessly". Kwame gripped Michael's shoulder and threw him to the other side of the room where Brad and Theo were waiting for him, as he neared Sara and stroked her face. He lowered his mouth to her ear and started to breathe raggedly on her earlobe.

"You know you want it, girl."

Sara threw her head forward so it collided with his and kicked him in the groin where it hurt the most. She stared as he flew backwards, then offered him a small smile. "You're right. I _had _been wanting to do _that _for _ages_, now." Her eyes met with Michael's as he was being attacked by the other two, but he was putting up a brave fight. Sara's hands, still tied behind her back, were working on the rope that bound her, with the small nail Michael had placed into her hands before he'd assumed his position before her. It wouldn't be long before she was free of her chains. Kwame let out a roar before launching himself towards her again, but Michael jumped at his back, forcing him flat onto the ground and holding a shard of broken glass to his face, he continued with an ice-cold voice : "Here's what's going to happen, Kwame…"

He paused for good measure and looked on proudly when Sara jumped up from the chair and ran over to the other two men, tying them up with the rope that had only a few seconds ago, bound her to the pipes. "…you and your buddies are going to be taken out of this room and put away in the SHU for the rest of your time here. If you have medical issues, your wounds are going to rot away, because if you ever go _near_ my girl again, I'm going to make you wish I had just murdered you right here, right now. Are we clear?"

Kwame let out a low groan at the sound of feet running towards the infirmary with a steady beat of thuds. Sara had motioned out the window that it was okay to send in the forces at bay, and now that they were here, the end of the daily drama was nearing. It was time for Michael's last words on the matter. "You're despicable."

Sara softly smiled at him. "That's what I said, too."

-

_Sara_

It was all so reminiscent of the previous time there'd been a riot at Fox River. Once again, she was being led outside and a blanket was being thrown over her shoulders. Her father was there, too… But this time, he only hugged her and told her he was happy she was safe and then his eyes followed the curve her hand was making, holding Michael's in her own, and he held out his hand for Michael to shake.

"I owe you a lot, Mr. Scofield."

The importance of this moment dawned on the three of them. For sure, Michael wouldn't be seen as an ex-con by the eyes of her father any longer, but as the man who had saved his daughter from a certain death.

"It's not a problem, sir."

The governor nodded at him and after throwing a final glance Sara's way, he walked off to talk to the new warden. Sara brought Michael's hands to her lips and softly kissed his knuckles. " We have so much to talk about."

He nodded. "But let's just…_be_ now, okay? Let me just hold you.." He spun her around so that her face was lying on his shoulder and their hands fell apart so they could rest on every inch of the other's body, "like this…and tell you that we're okay."

She smiled against him. "We're okay. You saved me again."

He pressed a small kiss to her hair. "You did the same to me."

-

_Lincoln_

He hadn't taken his eyes off of the screen ever since his brother had stormed off to save his girl. Any minute, he was expecting the news anchor to sadly report the death count at Fox River and how sad she thought it was that so many young people had been taken on this grayish day. But it never came…

What did come, was a knock on his door…he jumped at the sound of it and raced over to where…Henry Pope was standing. "Sir?" he'd asked amazedly, and the older man had just shrugged. "I don't want to be alone in the waiting." He'd plopped down onto the sofa and told the tale of how his wife was staying at her sister's for a few days, because she was caring for her sister's sick husband. Because Mrs. Pope had been a nurse before she retired and she knew how to treat him and…

Lincoln just didn't care. Up until the moment Henry started to talk about how Michael had shown up on his doorstep, much like he himself had done to Lincoln, and begged for Henry to help him save Sara. Now his brother was inside those prison walls – again – risking his life. Lincoln wondered when there'd be a day that the pair of them would be completely Fox River-free. He supposed it would never arrive. It had been a great part of there lives, even for the short amount of time they'd spent there. For sure, Michael would never have met Sara if it weren't for all this and if they were to be married... If Sara would forgive the both of them… He sighed. All of those 'if's were driving him crazy.

"_Great news from the sights of Fox River State Penitentiary,"_ The voice shook him out of his reverie and even Henry shut up. _"Thanks to former inmate and now national celebrity Michael Scofield, the chaos has come to an end before any lives were taken. Michael Scofield had been lured to this place by the capture and hostage of Doctor Sara Tancredi, who has been reported to be Scofield's fiancée."_ Lincoln raised his eyebrows. Hm. _"The man once again crawled his way into the state prison and reached the crime scene before it was too late. The three problem-stirrers were handed over to the __National Guard and will be severely punished. Let this be a reminder to all the Fox River inmates who are incarcerated here : the facility has a new guardian angel now."_

The camera swooped over the scene and stopped at the sight of two people embracing, standing still in the midst of all the chaos. They looked perfect together, and the two men behind the television set couldn't help but smile.

* * *

_Okay, that was if for today, kittens... Please please please tell me what you think! I promise you the next chapter'll be long and will involve MAJOR talking...but first tell me what you thought of this one? I know I'm not that great at writing 'action', but I tried..._

_XO_


	8. Dawn

**A/N: Hey you! Okay, I'm so sorry that it took me a while to get this chapter out, but I just wanted for it to be perfect, you know? I really hope you like it...**

**Please review? I really need for you to like this chapter...**

**XO**

* * *

She poured him coffee and pressed play on the stereo to let the soft music soothe her. Her hips moved along to the music and she was swaying in a way that she never had before. It was weird, she thought – it was weird to feel this at ease after having been tied up and threatened for a good 4 hours, but somehow he did this to her. Him..or the night..or the music. Her home hadn't felt this good in ages.

His eyes followed her every move and his lips quirked upwards in a smile. God, he loved her. He loved the feeling of freedom that had come over her, making her dance around in her living room. But he hated the fact that soon, he would have to ruin the easiness that seemed to exist between the two of them. He had wronged her so many times in the past and he knew that he would have to confess to all of his crimes and explain the why's to her. He owed it to her to try and make things right. When she was held hostage by those inmates, he felt as if he was dying. The very core of his soul was aching in a way that was too painful for him to even think about. She was his everything.

She handed him a cup and their fingers touched on the smooth side. She didn't pull away like she would have done had it been any other day, but raised her eyes to his and let out a soft laugh. "I'm sorry," she told him, "I can't seem to want to stop touching you." Her free hand traveled towards his chest and rested there. "You're real, aren't you? And you care?"

Michael gave her a gentle smile. "I think that's a huge understatement." He sucked in a inaudible breath, fearing that his next words would ruin the hum in the atmosphere. "And I'd like to explain that to you. I'd like to show you."

Sara let out a soft 'hm'. "Do you have to tell me now?" She released the cup, but held her fingers over his heart, rubbing a smooth circle on the fabric of his clothes, making the skin underneath heat up by her touch. "Could you just hold me first and then tell later?" She distanced herself from him and sighed. "It's just…I like the way you make me feel, right now. At this very moment." She accentuated those last words with gentle taps on the marble surface of her kitchen counter. "And I'd like to hold onto that for a bit."

He took a sip of his coffee and his eyes stared at her over the rim of the cup. "Sure," he told when the hot liquid had warmed his mouth completely. "I'd love that."

So he'd said the L-word. Sure, not in the way he had really intended to, but he figured that it was a start to showing her. It was a hint of things to come. Sara gently took his hand and led them over to the black leather couch only a few feet away and she waited for him to get settled against the pillows before she sat herself beside him and, after hearing a soft thud on her coffee table indicating that he had put the coffee down, snuggled against him, content at lying there, her head raising and falling with the rhythm of his breathing. She hadn't noticed until now how tired she was, and she told him this. His hand brushed through the strands of her hair. "I know," he said, "just sleep."

She opened her eyes and tilted her head to face him and she gave him one of the cutest smiles he had ever seen. Right then, he decided that he loved the sleepy side of her. She raised her face to his and softly kissed his cheek. "Okay," she whispered and closed her eyes. Michael pressed a last kiss onto her head and leaned back, watching her dose off after she granted him with a final smile.

He thought of all that had happened after they'd been rescued. How her father had looked at him with respect in his eyes, how an excited Henry Pope had grabbed the phone when he'd called Lincoln 

to tell him he was okay and not to expect him home soon, and how Sara had threaded their fingers together and had led him into her home, making him feel like he had always belonged there. His heart had surged with happiness.

"_I'm not letting her go, LJ."_ He'd told his nephew that very morning, after he'd been rejected again by her cold demeanor. He'd quirked an eyebrow when they'd closed the door of her apartment and he'd seen a large white paper with the very clear word "NO" written in capitals taped to the inside of it.

He smiled down at her and felt himself trying to fight the sleep that threatened to take him over. He just wanted to look at her some more…Take in every single detail of this perfect moment. Chances were that if they'd talked, he'd say the wrong things and then this would all be ruined. He would enjoy it while it lasted.

-

_Speak to me in the light of the dawn/ mercy comes with the morning_

Her eyelids fluttered open and for a moment, she was confused. Realization set in as it hit her whose chest she was leaning on and she raised her head a little to study him. His mouth was slightly open and his eyelids were quivering with the indication of the images that were appearing in front of him. She wondered what he was dreaming of. Was he reliving all the horrors he had seen, or was he thinking of all the bittersweet stolen moments they'd had between the two of them? She decided that whichever it was, she just wanted to be there beside him while he dreamt them.

As if feeling her eyes on him, Michael stirred and woke. "Hey," he muttered, his voice crackling with sleep. He cleared his throat and repeated his earlier statement, the word now finally resembling Michael. "Did you sleep?"

"Hmm," she purred, "better than ever." She looked at him teasingly. "I had a great pillow."

He was very cute when he blushed but tried to hide it by looking around the room in search of any indication as to what time it was. "It's around 5.30." Sara supplied and she drummed her fingers on his arm. "I think we should talk. It feels right now."

Michael closed his eyes again and nodded. "I'm just scared you'll hate me if I tell you everything." He confessed. Sara stayed silent, not daring to tell him that she loved him more than anything yet, and instead let her eyes reassure him.

"Just tell me.." she whispered, "..tell me everything about you and I'll tell you all about me."

He nodded again. "Do you want some coffee first?" Sara smiled and lightly hit him. "No stalling, Michael Scofield…"

He grinned guiltily then took a deep breath. There was no way to avoid telling her all the things he didn't want to. She deserved to know. "Lincoln was my everything before he was arrested. He was the only one I'd known growing up and he was the only one who'd ever…loved me with all my flaws and imperfections. Yet I felt so much better than him." Michael sighed. "I don't think you would have liked me before prison, Sara..I wasn't a very nice guy back then. I was…conceited. But Lincoln never 

left me, even if I was behaving terribly. He was the one who put me through college by taking on a huge loan that he KNEW he'd never be able to pay off and because of that, he got involved with the wrong people. He did all of that to help me, but I was blind to it. That's why he was in that parking garage where Terrence Steadman was supposedly murdered. He owed the bad guys so much, Sara, and they asked of him to go and kill a 'little nobody', as they put it. If not for me, he would never have been there. He would never have been set up."

Sara looked at him, seeing the guilt in his eyes, and softly caressed his arm, encouraging him to continue but didn't say a word, which he was grateful for. He needed to get all of this out. "My company helped build Fox River and still had the blueprints of the prison, so I knew that I had a way of getting him out of there. I needed to save him, like he had saved me time and time again. But the way out wasn't enough to save him. I needed others to make it work…" He took another breath. "I needed John Abruzzi for protection, I needed Westmoreland for his money.." Their eyes met. "…and I needed the prison doctor to like me."

He tore his gaze away from hers. "So I did my research.. I looked up your high school yearbook, dug up articles about you and basically knew everything there was to know about you…except who you really were. Sara," he twirled a strand of her hair between his fingers and met her big, trusting eyes, "you have to believe me.. maybe I was putting up an act with you that very first time, in the infirmary…but my façade was crumbling day by day. I fell in love with you Sara" she rewarded his statement with a small smile as to not break his concentration, "…and I never meant to involve you in the breakout. Yes, I needed you to like me, but only on certain level. I needed you not to kick me out of the place I needed to be at, which was your office, but I didn't need you to _like_ me. And of all things, I couldn't afford _like_ you.. much less fall for you. But I did. I'm in love with you, Sara…"

Michael gently wiped at the small tear on her cheek and pressed a kiss to it for emphasis. "I know that I can never be forgiven because of what I asked you to do…it was wrong. I hated having to ask you, but I want you… I _need _you to know that what I felt for you was, and still is, real. That kiss we shared was meant to be a distraction, but it wasn't.. That kiss we shared meant everything to me." He tore his eyes away from her, trying not to let her see the emotion in them, as he continued. "I'm so sorry for everything. I'm sorry for what I did to you, I'm sorry for not getting to you sooner after I'd escaped even though you were always on my mind, and I'm sorry for not being able to keep you safe."

Sara gently took his chin and directed his eyes back to hers before raising herself to kiss him softly. The moment their lips met, she felt the salty taste of tears, but she didn't think as to whether they were his or her own. She pulled her knees underneath her so she was sitting in front of him, between his legs, and wrapped her arms around his neck. After a few minutes, she pulled away and rested her head on his shoulder…still clinging to him. "I love you, Michael Scofield."

"You do?" His voice sounded so small and so vulnerable, it almost made her want to cry all over again.

"Mmm."

He kissed he nape of neck and squeezed her tighter to him. "I love you too, Sara."

* * *

_Okay, so that way it... PLEASE REVIEW? Please tell me if you like it? Pleaaaase? XO_

_PS: the lyrics are from Brooke Fraser's "C.S. Lewis Song"..._

_XO_


	9. Someday

**A/N : you guys, I am so sorry it took me this long to update.. I've been busy with exams and trips to the south of France, so I apologize. Uhm, some of you might raise your eyebrows at this chapter - to be honest, so did I. I totally, completely, honestly did not plan on writing this, but you know as well as I do how my fingers and mind can run away with me - it was a combination of a 'seize the love while it's there'-movie and the lightningflashes and thunderclouds outside... It's a result of a late night. Please tell me if you like it?Please please review?**

**XO**

**

* * *

**She snuggled closer into his arms. "I have to admit," she started, clearing her throat after those few uttered words, "that I haven't been making it easy on you either. Yes," she nodded softly to the glass coffee table, " you broke my heart, Michael, but that was only after you had healed it in a way that I didn't even know existed. Yet you didn't break my heart- " Sara rubbed the sleep and confusion out of her eyes " you just confused it, I guess. Because secretly, I think I knew that you weren't just toying with me – I could sense something, see it in your eyes, maybe. I was just scared out of my mind."

Michael pressed a soft kiss to the side of her face when she spoke that last sentence with the hint of the emotion of feeling foolish. He realised that she had just needed to protect herself, save herself from being hurt all over again. She had known that he wasn't like all the other men that had entered her life and left it again with words thrown at her, that had ripped her, shredded her to tiny pieces, but her head had wanted to close her heart down. Break it because she feared that he would.

"And that's why I couldn't look you in the eye for these months, why I had to…" she laughed, "put a sign on the inside of my door to tell myself that I had to do what I was doing, that I wasn't a little girl anymore and that no one would look after me. I was the only one capable of taking care of myself. But you never wavered.." Sara raised her hand and lay it against the side of his face, gently caressing his cheek and loving the feel of the forming stubble. "You stayed. And you saved me – time and time again. Today was…" she gestured into the air, a soft woosh of her arm flying through the space his breath filled, "just a small example, really. It just made me realise again how much I love you," she smiled, "and that I needed to stop acting like a stubborn idiot and let you in."

Her lips sought out his, and they just melted together. A sudden flash of light made them jump apart. Sara frowned. "Lightning, at this hour?" Michael shrugged. "Maybe it's meant to be a sign."

He paused, then said : "Marry me."

"Huh?"

Michael took a deep breath. "Marry me, Sara Tancredi. Make me the happiest, luckiest man alive and become my wife." His eyes seemed to stare straight into her soul, making her shiver with the fear of it all being a dream.

"Michael, where's this coming from – I mean, why now? We've only just put things back together, we've only just confessed, and you asking me to marry you is just…" she ran a hand through her hair as she sat up a little straighter, watching his face fall as her warmth left his, "… Michael, it's insane."

He gave her a small smile, his left hand seeking out her right to thread their fingers together. "I'm not saying it's a breeze, you know? I'm just… Sara, I thought I was going to lose you today. I mean, after thinking I'd already lost you…like…your heart an.. and.. and the possibility of you loving me, I was really thinking I would lose every single part of you.." he lifted a finger to her eyes and touched her temple. "Your eyes, that tell me everything you're feeling..and your lips, that just make me want to kiss you every single second, the cute little freckle on your nose.." her tapped his finger near it. "I was dying inside.."

"Michael, you know that I don't want to make your feelings seem…unimportant or even surreal, but you have to know, after what you've just described to me – you make it sound like it's just your fear talking. It'll die down, okay… So let's not –"

"You know that's not true." He shook his head slowly, almost as if he was trying to erase the words she'd just spoken from his own head, trying to make them dissolve into nothing. "You and I both know that I wouldn't just ask you this because I was..scared. I'm asking you because I love you more than I ever thought possible. And I know, Sara – I know we've only just put things on track again, but we'll figure things out as we go along.. we _have_ all the pieces to the puzzle, Sara – they're in our hands..and we know the puzzle will fit together so we only.."

"Do we?" A small, sad smile appeared on her face. "Michael, you may not be scared but that doesn't mean I'm not. I know that I'm in love with you." She nodded feverishly, taking a deep, frantic breath and letting it out a few seconds later. "That's one of the things I've ever been sure of in my entire life but.."

"Then marry me. Not today, Sara – I'm not asking you to elope and get married in Vegas by some Elvis wannabe – but someday." He squeezed her hand, asking for the woman that he wanted, and loved, more than anything, to reassure his screaming heart.

She lightly squeezed back. "Someday can be a very long time from now, Michael Scofield."

He smiled at her, pulling her back into his embrace. "You know I'll wait forever if I have to."

Sara gladly filled her rightful place again – the one in his arms – and nodded against his chest. "I know."

-

There had been no more talk on the subject that day. It drove him mad. It drove him passionately obsessed with getting her to accept his proposal someday down the road, and when that day came, he would have prepared everything to the point of perfection – it would become one of the best days of her life. And so a plan started to form inside of his head, and no one was to know of it. Only the walls of his mind would echo the ideas of blissful seconds and hours and days and finally an eternity spent with her.

Someday.

* * *

_Please please please tell me what you think? Pleaaaase?_

_All my lovin'_

_XO_


End file.
